The ever-increasing demand for sustainable, environmentally-friendly power generation from wind is currently met with devices such as the wind turbine. Although wind turbines are the most commonly used method of generating electrical power from wind, they have several inherent drawbacks. These devices are costly, difficult to construct, install, and maintain, highly visible, noisy, large, susceptible to damage, and relatively difficult to transport and assemble. Their tall stature makes them susceptible to damage from flying debris, birds, and even low flying planes. The U.S. Military has also voiced concerns claiming the placement of wind turbines in a radar system's line of sight may adversely impact the unit's ability to detect threats. Rotating wind turbines are also not suitable for military applications that require quiet, inconspicuous power generation in remote locations. Additionally, when facing high wind speeds, a mechanical brake must be applied, creating losses and inefficiencies. Therefore, there is a need for portable, non-rotating devices that can generate useful amounts of electrical power in a quiet, inconspicuous manner.
A system created by Vortex Hydro Energy uses the principle of vortex-induced vibration in water to harness wave energy. The company has developed a device called the Vortex Induced Vibration Aquatic Clean Energy (VIVACE). This product uses vortex-induced vibration as a primary means of creating mechanical motion from fluid flow. The system is designed to operate underwater in ocean currents. This system uses an electrically variable spring constant system that dynamically changes the natural frequency to allow for optimization at different flow speeds. This system is unsatisfactory for wind power generation due to the large difference between the fluid flow properties of air. The frequency of vortex shedding in air is much faster that the shedding frequency in water. Therefore, matching the system's natural frequency with the shedding frequency would result in an extremely large spring constant. A spring this size would require a great deal of force to move. The lift characteristics of this application do not provide enough lift to overcome this spring constant, and no vibrations will occur.
Therefore, a need exists for portable, non-rotating devices that can generate useful amounts of electrical power from wind in a quiet, inconspicuous manner.